Snapshots of our Lives
by WAFFLE-ROFL
Summary: A picture is worth a 1000 words. It's funny how our minds remember important moments in our lives like photographs. Even if we don't have the physical copy these moments are forever ingrained in our heads. A closer look at the man that is the Point-Man.
1. I Dom

Title: Snapshots of our Lives

Pairing(s): Mal/Dom, Arthur/Eames(eventually) but it is Arthur-centric

Rating: T (because of the occasional swear and eventual violence that will pop up)

Disclaimer: I do not own Inception or the wonderful characters that are in it, but I do enjoy playing around with them :)

A/N: This is the first fic I've published to this sight, so let me know what you think. Also this is going to be a multi-chapter story and I will try to keep things in chronological order. Please review as I would love to be able to improve as I go along with this one. Anyway, please enjoy!

* * *

It is Cobb family tradition to take pictures at every event, every moment in their lives. Mal started it and it wasn't long before Dom had jumped on the bandwagon. Soon, they had albums filled with pictures and memories. There was a physical reminder of everyone they had ever met.

So, when they had met Arthur, Mal had done everything in her power to get a picture of the elusive and aloof young man. As it turned out, this was a much more difficult task than she had originally anticipated. It was as if Arthur had a sixth sense for when there was a camera nearby.

Once she asked him if he was afraid of cameras or something. Some people didn't like the idea of there being a physical documentation of their existence. And given their occuppation, this was the most likely explaination. However he had just shaken his head and told her that he simply didn't like his picture being taken.

For a while, he had managed to elude Mal's camera until the faithful day when Phillipa was born. Dom had called Arthur the moment Mal had gone into labor. The young man had arrived within the hour and had waited patiently in the waiting room until he was allowed to see them. The boy (he was barely over 20 at the time) had balked a little when Mal asked him if he wanted to hold Phillipa, but he had reached out and held her.

He looked so natural with a baby in his arms (Mal had always wondered why this was), and he looked so content and at peace that Dom had taken the moment to snap a quick picture of him. The flash had startled the poor man so much that he had almost dropped Phillipa, but he had held on like his life depended on it.

Dom would look at the picture years later and think back to when they were a family and things were much simpler. Back when Mal was alive and Arthur actually smiled. No one knew that he kept the picture tucked in his wallet and he would look at it every so often when he wanted to remember the young man that had come into his life so suddenly and had just as quickly become a pivotal part of it.


	2. II Mal

Title: Snapshots of our Lives II

Pairing(s): Mal/Dom, Arthur/Eames(eventually) but it is Arthur-centric

Rating: T

Disclaimer: I do not own Inception or the characters in it...Sadly

A/N: Here's part two of however many I eventually feel like writing. Sadly, we're still not quite yet to the wonderfulness that is Arthur and Eames' relationship. Maybe next chapter. If anyone has any ideas for snapshots, I'd be more than happy to try to include them. Sometimes it gets difficult to come up with new ones and I'd hate to do repeats by accident. Anyway, please comment and review, but above all, Enjoy!

* * *

Ever since Dom had managed to get that picture of Arthur, Mal had been determined to get more. It was odd that the young man was practically part of the family and yet left no trace of ever having coming into their lives.

And so, she tried again and again. But time after time, Arthur had eluded the camera. This game of cat and mouse was beginning to irk Mal.

The next opportunity arose when Dom and Mal's anniversary rolled around. Now that they had a child they couldn't just go off and celebrate like they had in past years. Unless, they hired someone to watch Phillipa.

So of course, they called Arthur and asked if he would babysit. It wasn't the most difficult thing in the world to convince him to watch the little girl. From the moment he had first held her in his arms, the two had formed a bond that nothing could break.

Mal answered the door around four and had to resist running back into the house to grab the camera. There was something absolutely adorable about Arthur when he dressed down, meaning jeans, a t-shirt, and sneakers. While Mal had been the one to help him revamp his wardrobe, she still enjoyed seeing him dress like people his age. She led him into the house and he had gotten no farther than the end of the hall when Phillipa came barreling in, crashing into Arthur's legs. Without a second thought, the young man reached down and lifted Phillipa into the air, then drew her close so she was sitting on his hip.

Dom and Mal left them like that, waving goodbye from the front porch.

* * *

It was still early the next day when Dom and Mal decided to return home so they made sure to be quiet when they entered the house. Phillipa had a tendency to wake up in the middle of the night so they were sure that she and Arthur were still asleep. Not that this stopped them from wandering around the house to gaze upon their beautiful child.

But, she wasn't in her crib and Arthur wasn't in the guest room. The two parents immediately began searching the house. As Dom frantically checked all the doored rooms, Mal looked around the rest of the house. She noticed that the door to the back porch was slightly ajar and was hit by all sorts of scenarios, none of them very good. However she needn't have worried.

In the large, comfortable lounge chairs was Arthur curled up with Phillipa sprawled across his chest. She must have woken up in the middle of the night and in an attempt to lull her back to sleep Arthur had taken her outside to watch the stars. It must have been chilly, she thought as she noticed that they were encased in one of the extra comforters they kept in the closet.

Mal looked away for a moment to call to her husband, telling him that she found them and to bring the camera. Mal took the camera from his hands when he appeared and snapped a picture of the sleeping pair as the sunlight danced across their features.

Later, when people would ask about her children (prior to having James), this is the picture she would show them. And when they would give her a strange look and ask about the young man who clearly was not her child, she would laugh and calmly explain that while she wasn't his birth mother he was without a doubt her son and nothing would ever change that.


	3. III Eames

Title: Snapshots of our Lives III

Rating: T for violence

Pairing(s): Mal/Dom, Arthur/Eames(eventually) but it is Arthur-centric

Disclaimer: I do not own Inception or the characters is in it.

A/N: So this is actually a rewrite. I hated the old version, and today while in the shower I had an epiphany, that I will go into depth about at the end, since I would hate to give anything away. Please enjoy and review.

* * *

Eames has worked security jobs with the Cobbs many times, though he didn't meet Arthur until after Phillipa was born. However, he has heard of Mal's endeavor to take pictures of the young man and decided that if they ever finally met, he would definitely help her out.

The inevitable meeting was maybe a year after Phillipa had been born. It was nowhere near as exciting as one would think given the way their relationship turned out. Dom introduced them and there was this immediate dislike between the two. They were just too different from each other. Not that this stopped Eames from annoying the young man as much as humanly possible, someone as boring as Arthur needed to be riled up every once in a while.

Mal wasn't working the job with Eames, Arthur, and Dom but she did pop by the warehouse every once in a while, just to check up on them. It was at this point that she gave Eames her camera and made him promise to try to catch Arthur in action. A task that he took up happily and with great enthusiasm. Prior to meeting Arthur, the Brit hadn't thought it was possible to piss a person off that much.

The job went by without a hitch; it was almost boring, which might explain the definite rift that had developed between Arthur and Eames. So, when the job was over and Eames went to the bar to have some congratulatory drinks and things started to go south the end result was more than a little surprising.

Long story short, Eames had gone to one of the nicer bars; they had completed the job and were paid very well, so he could afford to treat himself. And by treating himself, he means getting absolutely piss drunk, but it was very good alcohol so it was all good. Let it be known that he had extended this invitation to both Dom and Arthur, but both had unfortunately declined. Possibly, he would pick up some company while at the bar. What he hadn't expected was getting jumped almost the second he left the bar. He also hadn't anticipated that he would be so inebriated that he wouldn't be able to defend himself properly.

He did get some good hits in, but he was unfortunately overpowered and could only sit back and take the beating. Eames did his best to curl up in a ball to protect both his gut and the camera he had tucked away him his coat pocket. He was so lost in his pain that he almost didn't notice that the men now leaving him alone. Then again, the lack of pain was noticeable enough that he looked up and was in awe of what he saw.

Arthur, stick in the mud, boring as hell Arthur was systematically cutting down each of the thugs. It was like watching a beautiful dance but with fists and kicks being thrown and blood flying through the air. The younger man's movements were so fluid and quick that Eames was having a hard time keeping up with him. One minute he was in one place and the next he was five feet away holding some man in a full nelson.

All Eames could think was how he wished he could get the camera out of his pocket and take a picture or the scene before him. The expression on Arthur's face was so out of the ordinary and so full of emotion. He wasn't looking at the world with a bored, better than you expression; no, he looked downright furious. The level of passion that his anger brought out in him was beautiful even as a bruise started blooming on his cheek along with little splatters of blood on his face. The image of his fury and him punching a man in the face would forever be imprinted in Eames' brain. It didn't matter that he was drunk and had been beaten; this was something that he didn't think he could ever forget, even if he wanted to.

After tonight, he would think about the young man that seemed to always be full of surprises. When he would think of this incident he would think of the few seconds after his brain had taken the mental picture when Arthur walked over to him, concern filling those beautiful brown eyes, and extending a hand to help him up. He would remember the young man lifting him up and bearing most of his weight while they slowly made their way back to the hotel. He would remember the soft touch of calloused fingers against his skin as Arthur cleaned and dressed his wounds. He would remember cool hands brushing against his brow as he fell asleep. He would remember waking up the next morning all alone and wondering if the previous night had all been a dream. He would then recall remembering the camera and looking back to see the picture of Arthur fighting, the concrete evidence that he hadn't dreamed the whole thing up. And the next time they would meet, both men would pretend it never happened, but it was obvious that something had changed between them. There was an understanding that now existed between them that would forever change their relationship.

* * *

Note: So as you've noticed, I'm taking a less literal approach to this story and every chapter may not be the result of an actual picture being taken, such as in this case. In the old version, if you'll recall, Eames took a picture after drinking copious amounts of alcohol and being beaten. Not terribly realistic, so this makes much more sense, yeah?

Anyway, reviews are love and appreciated. And be prepared for more, I just brainstormed up about five more.


	4. IV Phillipa

Title: Snapshots of our Lives

Pairing(s): Mal/Dom, Arthur/Eames(eventually) but it is Arthur-centric

Rating: T (because of the occasional swear and eventual violence that will pop up)

Disclaimer: I do not own Inception or the wonderful characters that are in it, but I do enjoy playing around with them :)

A/N: I'm so sorry that this took so long. I was so excited to write some unadulterated fluff, then it turned into one of the hardest things to write next to chapter 3. I swear that it will not take this long to get the next chapter up, in fact it's already in the process of being written. Also, thank you so much for the reviews, they are much appreciated. For faithful readers, if you haven't gone back and reread part III, please do since I edited it and fixed up some stuff. I'd love to hear what you think about the changes. I feel like there was something else I wanted to say to you guys, but it had eluded my over tired brain, so thanks again, and enjoy!

* * *

To say that Phillipa adored her uncle Arthur would be the understatement of the year. To say that Arthur felt the same way about his niece was also the understatement of the year. Given the love they felt for each other, it was almost sad how little they actually got to see each other. So whenever Arthur was able to, he would stop by and Phillipa would put everything on hold just to spend time with him.

They were good for each other. Phillipa brought out the gentler, more carefree side to Arthur, the one that he hid away from the world. In return, he would answer her questions, the ones that her parents skated over and avoided. He was a good older brother figure of sorts in her life.

Mal and Dom loved watching them interact. Sometimes it was like they switched personalities. Phillipa would become serious and pensive as she mulled over the answer to whatever question she had asked him. Then minutes later, he would be rolling around in the grass and dirt with her, playing some sort of game.

He was between jobs right now and the Cobbs were taking a break because Mal was pregnant again. So, Mal had invited him over for the day, saying that his niece missed him and was constantly asking about the next time he was going to visit.

Dom and Mal watched the two playing in the yard from their places on the deck. Arthur had arrived a little over an hour ago and Phillipa had already convinced him to play some sort of game. The two parents laughed when the little girl tackled the young man to the ground and proceeded to clamber atop his body. She yelped loudly when Arthur turned quickly, but catching her before she hit the ground.

It was refreshing to have this sort of energy and happiness around the house. It wasn't that they weren't like this all the time, but it was different, like a fresh breeze rushing through the house in a cleansing sort of way. Mal smiled and lightly ran her fingers over the camera that she had resting on her stomach. She had gotten in the habit of keeping the camera in hand every time Arthur came to visit. Despite his many protests, she insisted that he was very photogenic and there needed to be more pictures of him around this house. She had already taken quite a few of him and her daughter playing around.

And during the course of the next few hours, up until the moment Arthur went home, she would take many more pictures. Some would be deleted or lost during the transfer from camera to paper, but a few would remain. The ones that stayed showed a smiling young man who could find the joy in life. They would show someone who wasn't afraid to get in touch with his inner child.

In later years, Phillipa would look at these pictures and revel in the fact that she was one of the few people who ever got to see her Uncle Arthur act this way. It was a secret that she kept near and dear to her heart. Though, she would often think that it was a shame that the rest of the world didn't get to see the same wonderful man that had been such a large part of her life.


	5. V Dom

Title: Snapshots of our Lives V

Pairing(s): Mal/Dom, Arthur/Eames(eventually) but it is Arthur-centric

Rating: T (because of the occasional swear and eventual violence that will pop up)

Disclaimer: I do not own Inception or the wonderful characters that are in it, but I do enjoy playing around with them :)

A/N: So here's part five of Snapshots. Really quick update since I already had this one written up, just needed to do some tinkering as I transferred it from my notebook to computer. This probably won't happen again, so consider this a gift. This one along with the next couple are gonna be a little on the heavy/serious side, but I'm gonna try to get some fluff in there. And for those of you waiting for the A/E to happen, don't worry, it'll hit soon. I haven't brainstormed a chapter for it, but don't worry I haven't forgotten about it. Please enjoy and review :)

* * *

He was still pacing, he hadn't stopped even after holding his son for the first time. Even now as he watched his wife sleep with James cradled safely in her arms. Even now, that he had spoken to his daughter and promised to bring Maman and the baby home soon.

His best friend, brother, son; however you looked at it, whatever you labeled him as, still wasn't here. Dom had called Arthur many times and left many messages. He knew that the young man was working, but it had been over twenty-four hours and he hadn't received any replies. Arthur was more than capable of taking care of himself, but Dom still couldn't help but worry. He had seen the scars that marred the young man's body enough times to know what sort of business Extraction was. It didn't matter that Arthur could defend himself quite well when he was sedated and unable to protect himself. There were so many things that could go wrong and all of them were running through Dom's mind at this very moment.

In order to curb some of his tension, he picked up James and started to rock him gently in his arms. Holding a baby was almost therapeutic and he felt some of his fears start to ebb away. It was easy to see why Arthur visited them and played with Phillipa when he wasn't working. The stresses that accompanied his job all but melted away when faced with the simple mind of a child.

His blue eyes darted towards the door as it was quietly pushed open and a much disheveled Arthur crept in. Dom hadn't thought it was possible for the Point Man to ever be associated with the word, but here he was proving him wrong. Everything about the young man seemed wrong at that very moment and Dom knew something had happened.

"What's his name?"

Arthur's quiet voice cut through the silence though only barely.

"James. Would you like to hold him?" It was a rhetorical question if one at all. He held out his newborn son to Arthur, with an expression that said he wasn't allowed to cop out on this one.

The Point Man hesitated for a moment, some unknown emotion flashing across his face for a second. He sighed and mentally regrouped before reaching out and pulling the little bundle of joy close to his chest.

Dom took in his best friend's appearance, trying to get some grasp on what happened. His suit was dirty and wrinkled; he had been running. His knuckles were torn and raw; he had been fighting. There were fresh bruises and cuts on his face; he had been outnumbered. His posture was tense; he had just gotten off the plane from wherever he had been. His eyebrows were tightly knit together as his eyes focused on James; something was wrong.

He couldn't bring himself to reach over to the table and grab the camera despite how Mal had begged him to the second Arthur had arrived and the first time he held James. He just couldn't bring himself to do it. Arthur wasn't smiling or even looking remotely happy. His stormy expression was the complete opposite of James, who was smiling happily in his sleep. It was then that Dom understood the emotion that had crossed Arthur's face and his reluctance to hold James. He had been scared and afraid of tainting this innocent child with his bloodied hands. Dom knew Arthur had killed before, even after getting out of the army. The weight of his sins was particularly felt this evening when he walked into the pristine room covered in dirt and blood. Dom wanted to shake his head, there wasn't anyone he trusted more to look after his children than Arthur. He'd never actually tell Arthur about this, but he would make sure that the young man knew how much he trusted him with everything that he did.


	6. VI Miles

Title: Snapshots of our Lives

Pairing(s): Mal/Dom, Arthur/Eames(eventually) but it is Arthur-centric

Rating: T (because of the occasional swear and eventual violence that will pop up)

Disclaimer: I do not own Inception or the wonderful characters that are in it, but I do enjoy playing around with them :)

A/N: So here's part VI, sorry it took so long. I started it then got busy with schoolwork (had a fair amount of tests this week), but I decided that I wanted to do it before tomorrow since I've got plans. Anyway, it's sad, so I'm sorry, but it had to be done before I could move on with my other ideas. Thanks for all the reviews and please keep them coming (I love and thrive off of them). Please enjoy, and keep the tissues close at hand.

* * *

It was raining. Of course it was raining, Mal was dead and even the sky mourned the loss of such a beautiful soul. Maybe it was a good thing it was raining; then you couldn't tell who was crying and who wasn't. Miles watched each of the guests at the funeral, anywhere but at the casket that was slowly being lowered into the ground.

He looked to where his grandchildren were standing with Arthur. He held each of their hands in his own. It was awful that Dom hadn't even been allowed to go to the funeral. The second he had heard that he was suspected of killing her, he had fled the country, leaving Arthur to take care of his children until Miles could get there. Miles had only arrived a few days ago, and by then the funeral arrangements were taken care of and the children understood what was going on. James and Phillipa were both crying; he couldn't see their faces but he could see their tiny shoulders shaking.

Miles let his eyes roam around the small crowd of people, but his eyes kept going back to the children and their current guardian. Arthur had actually been the one to call him and tell him about what happened. At first he had been annoyed by being called by a man that he had only met a few times, but got over it once he heard about the inquiry about Dom. The young man had been nothing but helpful with managing the children and keeping them occupied.

Once Mallorie had mentioned that she thought of Arthur as a son, statement that had left Miles most puzzled. From what he had observed of their interactions, there was nothing there to suggest that they treated anything but as friends. Maybe if he had been looking more closely he would have seen the way that Mal had fussed over Arthur in her silent almost unnoticeable way. He might not have missed the way Arthur smiled in that small way characteristic of him when he thought no one was looking. He did notice the way Arthur had looked to Mal for approval. Maybe not openly, but it was obvious how much her valued her opinion and hated to disappoint her. He also noticed how Mal took care to make sure that Arthur was included, like he was part of the family and not some outsider who they happen to be good friends with.

So now as he watched his grandchildren he saw not two, but three. The young man who had wormed his way into Mal's heart was just as lost as the two children that tightly gripped his hands. And as Miles watched him try to stay strong and deny himself the right to cry, for the sake of the children, his heart broke. James and Phillipa were not the only ones who lost their mother today. Eventually they would grow up and remember Mal as the soft voice that had rocked them to sleep when they were babies. They would be sad for a time, but they were young, they would be able to move on. Arthur was older and would never forget anything about Mal, the way she had taken him in as her own, how she had rocked him to sleep when he had nightmares, the way she worried when he was on the job and couldn't keep in touch. Miles wondered how this would affect the young man. The only reason he knew what Arthur's smile looked like was because of the pictures that Mal had showed him on a few occasions. Miles knew that as the casket was lowered into the ground, it contained not only the body of his daughter, but the laughter and smile of her oldest son. A part of him had died that day, and Miles was sure that no one would ever see it again.

It was raining. Of course it was raining. Even the world was mourning the loss of a beautiful soul full of life. But it also mourned the loss of the child inside Arthur, the one that he had only shown in front of Mal. Even the world knew that it might never be graced with the joy that his smile brought those around him. It knew this, and it cried.


	7. VII Eames

Title: Snapshots of our Lives

Pairing(s): Mal/Dom, Arthur/Eames(eventually) but it is Arthur-centric

Rating: T (because of the occasional swear and eventual violence that will pop up)

Disclaimer: I do not own Inception or the wonderful characters that are in it, but I do enjoy playing around with them :)

A/N: Part VII. This fic is really coming along. Thank you everyone for the reviews and the favorites, I really appreciate them. I wanted to try to write something a little happier, but not too happy given the events occuring at and around this time. It's definitely nowhere near as sad as the last chapter and you might be smiling despite yourself at the end. Please enjoy and review!

* * *

Eames hasn't seen Arthur or Cobb since that one job right before Mal jumped. It hasn't been that long but considering how busy the duo was he was surprised that it had taken them this long to need the assistance of a forger. He himself hadn't been able to attend the funeral of the wonderful Mal. It was difficult to do that sort of thing when your every movement was being tracked by a man that wanted you dead.

So now he's waiting in the airport for either Arthur or Cobb to come get him. Though if he had to bet on it, he would put his money on the Point-Man being the one to pick him up. He hadn't seen either of them and wasn't sure what to expect. Cobb was bound to be messed up, his wife had jumped from a building right in front of him, so there was no doubt that he wasn't going to be the same Cobb that Eames had once known. He was concerned for the Extractor, anyone with a heart would, and he knew that he would never really be alright. Some day he would be able to move on, he still had his children, living reminders of his beautiful wife.

Maybe it was because of what happened between them and the fondness that Eames had developed for him, but he was more concerned about Arthur and how he was handling the situation. They had become almost friends during some of the other jobs that they had pulled and Eames had been happy to discover that there was a work-Arthur and a relax-Arthur. On more than one occasion he had persuaded the younger man to go out and get drinks or dinner with him. It was pleasant. When he wasn't working, Arthur actually smiled, laughed, and relaxed. It was nice to know that Arthur was capable of acting his age every once in a while. Eames knew that a big part of this could be attributed to the time that the young man had spent with the Cobb family. Each of them had some sort of positive impact on Arthur, though Mal's influence was greater and more apparent than anyone else. The forger was concerned that with Mal's death, Arthur would lock away that playful side that Mal had painstakingly drawn out, even if only a bit.

"Mr. Eames."

Eames looked up at the sound of his name. Arthur in his wonderfully tailored three-piece suit was standing in front of him. During the last couple of jobs, Eames had managed to pull a smile out of Arthur while they were working, and he'd be lying if he said he hadn't been looking forward to seeing the young man's smile. It was one of Eames' favorite things about him.

"Darling, you look exquisite as always." This usually got him a tug at the corners of Arthur's mouth or even if he was lucky a small blush.

He got none of these things. If anything, Arthur's frown deepened. It was disheartening to say the least. "How's Cobb?"

This seemed to tire the young man out even though he hadn't done anything. His whole posture just seemed to slump and suddenly he looked so very small and tired. What had happened to him? How badly had Mal's death affected him? The drop in façade only lasted a second before the rigid, military stance was back in place. Or at least it did until Eames decided to hug him. The forger felt the smaller body tense up for a moment before relaxing. At least Arthur recalled the bond they had been developing before everything happened. He remembered that Eames wasn't here to hurt him, he was here to help.

"I know nothing I say will make the hurt go away, but if you ever need anything, darling, please ask."

He felt Arthur nod against his shoulder before disengaging himself from the Brit's arms. He tugged at his suit and reoriented himself before grabbing Eames' suitcase and leading him towards the car. This relationship didn't need words, they just knew. There were some things that they just couldn't say, not to themselves and not to each other. Eames was glad that deep down, the cute smiling poncy point-man he had met almost five years ago was still there. All he had to do was push the right buttons within limit and be patient with him. It would take awhile but Eames knew when the wait would be worth it when one day he'd be able to get him to smile again.


	8. VIII Nash

Title: Snapshots of our Lives

Pairing(s): Mal/Dom, Arthur/Eames(eventually) but it is Arthur-centric

Rating: T (because of the occasional swear and eventual violence that will pop up)

Disclaimer: I do not own Inception or the wonderful characters that are in it, but I do enjoy playing around with them :)

A/N: An odd chapter. I know I wrote a violent one already, and touched on Arthur being not at all opposed to killing people, but I kinda wanted to write one about Nash and him being scared and talking about the common misconception people have when they first meet Arthur.

* * *

Nash was scared of Arthur. Maybe it had been his own fault for taking one look at the pretty face and jumping to conclusions. He had learned harder than most that Arthur is not a force to be reckoned with. Arthur had broken his nose with one swift punch and would have gone for more had Cobb not been there to hold the young man back. It wasn't even the fact that he had attacked him. It was the look in his eyes, this wild look that promised that if he wasn't being restrained that there wouldn't be enough of Nash left for anyone to indentify.

The feeling didn't go away for the rest of the time that they had to work together. Nash tried his best to avoid being alone with Arthur for any longer than five minutes. He was afraid that at any given second the young man was going to pounce and rip his throat out. It didn't help his nerves any that they were working for a powerful company that would kill them should they fail. He wasn't worried about failing since he was working with the best Extractor and Point-Man, but the threat was looming over his head and it made him nervous.

Arthur never smiled. Maybe that's what really unnerved Nash. No, wait he saw him smile once. And it frightened him more than it should have, but considering the circumstances he'd say his reaction was perfectly justifiable. He knew that he was working a dangerous business, but he had always managed to keep on the quiet side of things. But it seemed like trouble and danger followed Arthur and Cobb like some sort of disease.

It was this realization that he had that brought him to right now. Nash was standing near the door of the warehouse they had commandeered for the job, occasionally looking out into the streets. But for the most part, his attention was on what was happening in the building. Not too long ago Arthur had burst in dragging a man by his collar with him. He had immediately barked at Nash to guard the door and for the last ten minutes had been trying to get information out of the man. Nash winced every time the man denied knowing anything and Arthur systematically broke his fingers. Pretty soon the man was going to run out of fingers and Arthur was going to have to resort to something else.

He took a deep breath when the sound of breaking bones stopped and the man began to babble, telling Arthur everything he wanted to know. Now it would be over, Arthur would no doubt send the man off, telling him to tell his employer not to mess with them. He turned to look at the young man in time to see his pull out his gun and press it to the man's forehead. Sweat broke out on Nash's skin despite him the cold feeling that was creeping up his spine. The man on the floor was clutching his broken hand and sobbing and begging him not to pull the trigger. The Architect tried to look Arthur straight in the eye even as his dark gaze was focused on the man before him.

Nash was surprised, then again maybe he wasn't. There was no emotion of any sort in the dark eyes. Not anger, sorrow, hesitance, nothing, only coldness. He didn't even so much as blink when he pulled the trigger causing blood and brain matter to splatter on the floor behind him. Nash had to resist the urge to vomit on the spot; he had never seen anyone get killed before especially not in the ruthless and gruesome way that he had just witnessed.

"Why'd you kill him?" His voice was shaking, just as the rest of his body was.

Arthur turned to him slowly, setting his dark gaze on the shaking man. "He knew too much." His voice was unwavering and resolute.

So, Nash was frightened of Arthur. Even while his reasoning made perfect sense given the situation, it seemed a bit much. He would never be able to look at Arthur the same way and he hoped to God that they never wanted to work with him ever again. The man he had previously thought of having that face of an angel was a demon. There was something not human about him, a cruelty possessed only by those of other realms. The cold dark calculating eyes that tore through everything they looked at. Nash was right to fear this person, the man who would protect those he cared about at the risk of his life and sanity. Those eyes would haunt Nash's dreams for the rest of his days, icey cold and void of any sort of emotion.

* * *

A/N: Sorry if Arthur seemed a little un-Arthurlike, and way off base from the way I've been trying to get him, but I thought it was important to show the work-Arthur. And I wasn't in the greatest mood so a violent chapter seemed like a good idea at the time.


	9. IX Ariadne

Title: Snapshots of our Lives

Pairing(s): Mal/Dom, Arthur/Eames(eventually) but it is Arthur-centric

Rating: T (because of the occasional swear and eventual violence that will pop up)

Disclaimer: I do not own Inception or the wonderful characters that are in it, but I do enjoy playing around with them :)

A/N: Thanks so much for all the support and reviews, I truly appreciate them. So here's the ninth installment and we're finally getting into the movie-time line. So yay!

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It was late in the warehouse, the rooms for the most part cloaked in darkness where the light of their desk lamps didn't reach. The moon was streaming in through the windows to provide a little extra light, but not enough to totally banish the darkness. Most of the team had disappeared from the building, leaving Ariadne alone with her mazes and layouts. She had been preoccupied by a particular detail in her designs that she wanted to fix. She was almost done and decided to pack it up since she had an early class the next morning and didn't want to fall asleep during the lecture, which never boded well for her.

As she packed up her materials, she peeked into the back room where Cobb had gone under with Arthur supervising his prone form. She often wondered about Cobb and Arthur's relationship. About whether they were simply business associates who had along the way begun to resemble friends. But Arthur was so familiar with Cobb's life and with what had happened to him that it made that scenario unlikely. How close had he been to Mal? Whenever the Point-Man spoke of her, he did so without ever changing expression. It was odd considering how close he was to Cobb. She hastily shoved her notes in her bag and got up to leave, making her way towards the back room to at least say goodnight to Arthur.

She didn't get any further than the doorway, her feet stilled by what was happening in front of her eyes. Arthur, the man who always wore immaculate suits without anything out of place had stripped down to his undershirt and with bare feet was going through a complicated series of exercises. She watched in fascination as he took down invisible enemy after invisible enemy soundlessly. For someone who was exercising his breathing was pretty even. The only evidence of his exertion was his sweat slicked body and mussed up hair.

Her captivation kept her rooted to the spot as he took down his last enemy, standing stock still in the middle of the room before tugging the sweat covered undershirt over his head and staring at it for a moment before throwing it onto one of the lawn chairs in the room. He turned away completely from the door, facing Cobb and giving Ariadne a good view of his back. She stared; at first at the cords of muscle that ran up and down his back, but then at the tattooed words across his shoulders. When she squinted she was able to make out the words: Death Before Dishonor. From the beautiful inked words, her eyes followed the trails of scars around them. Some were worse than others, but how had he obtained so many of them? Were they all because of dreaming? Was this business really that dangerous? She had thought that the only danger was in the dreams, that she would only experience pain in the dreams where she knew it wouldn't exist once she got back to reality.

After standing for so long, he finally made a move to sit down in the chair next to Cobb. His back was still to Ariadne, but she could see him move to grab Cobb's hand. For a moment, it looked like their ages were reversed and Arthur was the older of the two rather than Cobb. And maybe he was in a sense. Everything he did was for Cobb; there wasn't a single thing that he wouldn't do for the older man; that much was obvious from his icy exterior and heavily scarred body. He was the pillar that held Cobb high above the torrent seas that was his life. He's the one that kept Cobb from drowning in his sea of misery. Arthur held firm and strong as the waves crashed against him, threatening to break him. Nothing but time would ever break him. As she crept away, Ariadne wondered how long he had been fighting this battle. How much he had given up for the sake of seeing Cobb the victor of his battle against misery. He was a strong man, Ariadne was sure of that, and there wasn't a single other person in the world who would dream of doing what he was. He would never fall, she was sure.


	10. X Yusuf

Title: Snapshots of our Lives

Pairing(s): Mal/Dom, Arthur/Eames(eventually) but it is Arthur-centric

Rating: T (because of the occasional swear and eventual violence that will pop up)

Disclaimer: I do not own Inception or the wonderful characters that are in it, but I do enjoy playing around with them :)

A/N: I know this chapter is kinda random, but I wanted to do cute and fluffy so here is some literal fluff.

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He hadn't meant for it to happen, especially during the job, but it had followed him home and what else was he supposed to do about it? Yusuf stared at the bright green eyes of the kitten that had insisted on stalking him back to the hotel where he was staying. He couldn't keep it though, the hotel for had a strict policy against pets and it was only a matter of time before they found out about the animal. And the idea of bringing it on the plane when they left for Inception was just out of the question. The poor thing was too young to be put through that kind of stress. As such, the only logical and responsible thing to do was to push the thing on one of his teammates. He had thought long and hard about who to ask and what arguments to make in order to appeal to each of them.

Yusuf started with Ariadne who as a normal person was not immune to the cuteness that went with all baby animals. But she couldn't, the university dorms also had a strict policy against pets. She was sad to say no, but she just couldn't keep the little guy.

Eames was next, but that went quickly out the window when the kitten tried to maul his hand every time he tried to pet him. His hand was beginning to resemble something put through a cheese grater. They weren't sure why but the kitten hated Eames.

All Cobb had to do was look once at the kitten and shake his head for Yusuf to get the picture. He wasn't even going to try with that one, things were just too messed up and Cobb was too far absorbed in his own problems.

Around lunchtime, Yusuf lost track of the kitten. He had been involved in an experiment for a sedative and when he looked up, the little ball of fur was gone. Alarmed, he looked around in time to see the kitten jump onto Arthur's lap when the Point-Man made a move to get up from his desk. For a moment, Yusuf was scared for the kitten's safety as he was sure Arthur was just going to push away the small animal. But he was remarkably surprised when he began petting the kitten who allowed the Point-Man to scratch idly at his belly.

It was sweet though in an odd sort of way. For the remainder of the day, the normally stoic Point-Man kept the kitten on his lap, occasionally petting him between reading and taking notes. He almost looked like a normal human being who was capable of showing affection. The effect was of course ruined when Eames made some lewd comment causing Arthur to throw a pen at his head. Yusuf pulled out his cell phone after the commotion had calmed down and snapped a picture of Arthur holding the kitten in the crook of his arm while he was checking over one of Ariadne's designs. The Chemist couldn't wait until he was able to return back to his shop and print out a copy of the picture. He would be sure to send it to everyone who knew Arthur, or at least everyone on the team. Maybe he'd make a collage of all of them to show that this whole experience wasn't a totally horrid idea. If he did then this picture was definitely going to be included.


	11. XI Saito

Hey, y'all. So, it's been a while. I deeply apologize. My brain just got taken away and I kinda lost some motivation to work on this. I'm glad I chose to go on here a couple days ago and look through what I had written as well as your reviews. Because of that, I remembered how much I had enjoyed working on this fic, and right now I could use some happiness. I hope you guys are all still into this fic and will enjoy this. As always, please review :)

Disclaimer: Inception and the characters in it belong to Christopher Nolan, I'm just borrowing them for my own devious purposes.

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XI. Saito has met and dealt with a lot of people in his life. So, if ever asked, he'd have to say that he's gotten pretty good at reading people and figuring them out. It was nothing too in depth, but he needed to at least be able to come up with a basis as to be able to appeal to their better nature. Despite some of his hostile takeovers, he knew that more battles were won using soft words than hard thrown punches.

It was because of this skill that he was able to get Dom Cobb to so easily agree to perform Inception. The man was so transparent; it was easy to get him to do as he wanted. A man who knows what he wants is an easy man to manipulate.

He was a little surprised to see the young Point-Man who had been on the COBOL job in the warehouse after the team had been assembled. After all the trouble he had gone through to convince Saito that Inception was impossible, he had thought that he would have opted out. Saito knew that the dreaming world was a world of thieves and criminals. Thieves and criminals did not have a sense of loyalty towards their teammates. There was the saying, 'loyalty among thieves', but that didn't seem to fit the current situation.

Arthur was at the warehouse day after day, working harder than anyone he had ever known. Saito was aware of the Point-Man's skill. It was impossible to hear about the infamous Dom Cobb without hearing about his equally as skilled Point-Man, Arthur.

He didn't understand the loyalty between the two men, or ever their relationship. Arthur was much too calm and collected about the whole thing to have really been involved with Cobb before his wife died. If he had, wouldn't he be just as upset as Cobb, if not more so due to his youth? Saito was convinced that the only reason Arthur hung around was because like Cobb, he only worked with the best; that had to be it. Maybe along the way, though, they had become friends of sorts.

Saito sometimes spent time in the warehouse, if he wasn't doing anything directly related to the job then he was doing some business in one of the spare offices. He went in and out of Arthur's area all the time, borrowing a calculator or pen or something. One day he went in while the Point-Man had gone out to pick up lunch for the team to grab a stapler when he saw the photograph. It was Arthur, looking much younger, Dom and a woman who must have been Mal. Arthur was sandwiched between the couple, grinning brightly at the camera, so brightly that his dimples were showing. Mal and Cobb looked just as happy as the young man, though she definitely took more of a parental stance next to Arthur. It was in the way she had her arm wrapped around him, like she was sending the message that if anyone messed with him, they would feel her wrath.

He was mesmerized by the picture and didn't hear Arthur come back until suddenly there was a presence next to him. He looked over guiltily, picture in one hand and stapler in the other. Without a word, Arthur slowly took the photo from his hand and stared at it for a moment before putting it back down, this time facedown, like it pained him to look at it and remember happier times.

Saito watched as Arthur walked out of the little office and into the main area where the team was. He walked slowly, like he was weighted down by some heavy burden. Then the businessman realized it, the burden. Arthur covered up his relationship with Mal so others wouldn't look at him the way they looked at Cobb. So he could deny himself the right to feel sorrow for her death and mourn her. And it was all so he could take care of Cobb. The young man followed Cobb because the older man had no one else. Because he needed some sort of anchor to tie him down to reality.


End file.
